famous conflict of interest cases
Sometimes, an institution desires one result rather than another for purely self-interested reasons. Of course, a judge who gets wind of conflict during trial may have to enquire in both directions: prospectively to assess the risk of conflict if the lawyer remains in place; if there is no such risk requiring removal and mistrial, conversely, the judge may have to enquire retrospectively to see whether a conflict has actually affected the defendant adversely, see infra, at 13-14. Mickens was represented by the murder victim's lawyer; that lawyer had represented the victim on a criminal matter; and that lawyer's representation of the victim had continued until one business day before the lawyer was appointed to represent the defendant. This could affect the way our company is perceived by others. . The defendant has the same burden to prove adverse effect (and the prospect of reversal is the same) whether the judge has no reason to know of any risk or every reason to know about it short of explicit objection.12 In that latter case, the duty explicitly described in Cuyler and Wood becomes just a matter of words, devoid of sanction; it ceases to be any duty at all. Unless the accused has acquiesced in such representation, the defense presented is not the defense guaranteed him by the Constitution, for, in a very real sense, it is not his defense." The irrationality of taxing defendants with a heavier burden for silent lawyers naturally produces an equally irrational scheme of incentives operating on the judges. The lawyer who did represent him had a duty to disclose his prior representation of the victim to Mickens and to the trial judge. But developing those skills requires patience and discipline. A look at the case of U.K. entity HS2, the taxpayer-owned company building Britain's new high-speed rail line, which recently revoked a key contract amid allegations of conflicts of interest involving the U.S. engineering firm CH2M. The one-page docket sheet also listed Saunders as Hall's counsel. 2d, at 613-615. On the merits, the Court of Appeals assumed that the juvenile court judge had neglected a duty to inquire into a potential conflict, but rejected petitioner's argument that this failure either mandated automatic reversal of his conviction or relieved him of the burden of showing that a conflict of interest adversely affected his representation. 211-213; see also id., at 219. Most Courts of Appeals, however, have applied Sullivan to claims of successive representation as well as to some insidious conflicts arising from a lawyer's self-interest. But why should an objection matter when even without an objection the state judge knew or should have known of the risk and was therefore obliged to enquire further? Def[endant] deceased." . " Fulminante, supra, at 310. Particularly galling in light of the first two cases is the majority's surprising and unnecessary intimation that this Court's conflicts jurisprudence should not be available or is somehow less important to those who allege conflicts in contexts other than multiple representation. 2d 586, 613-615 (ED Va. 1999). And the case became known as the "Little Albert" experiment. A judge who knows or should know that counsel for a criminal defendant facing, or engaged in, trial has a potential conflict of interests is obliged to enquire into the potential conflict and assess its threat to the fairness of the proceeding. Russia's weaponisation of its gas and oil exports bolstered the case for an energy transition already made urgent by climate change. In a capital case, the evidence submitted by both sides regarding the victim's character may easily tip the scale of the jury's choice between life or death. No "inquiry" by the trial judge could have shed more light on the conflict than was obvious on the face of the matter, namely, that the lawyer who would represent Mickens today is the same lawyer who yesterday represented Mickens' alleged victim in a criminal case. On this view, the exception in Holloway for objection cases turns solely on the theory that "harm" can safely be presumed when counsel objects to no avail at the sign of danger. Indeed, even if Saunders had learned relevant information, the District Court found that he labored under the impression he had no continuing duty at all to his deceased client. The defendants gave inconsistent testimony and were convicted on all counts. You may also opt to downgrade to Standard Digital, a robust journalistic offering that fulfils many users needs. potential or perceived conflict of interest because in many cases, knowledge of the conflict of interest can be managed to mitigate the risk to both PMI and its' stakeholders. Mickens' lawyer's violation of this fundamental obligation of disclosure is indefensible. the public defender could not be expected to investigate possible conflicts of interest or to give codefendants unbiased advice concerning their right to separate . It is of vital importance to the defendant and to the community that any decision to impose the death sentence be, and appear to be, based on reason rather than caprice or emotion." But the Court also explained that courts must rely on counsel in "large measure," id., at 347, that is, not exclusively, and it spoke in general terms of a duty to enquire that arises when "the trial court knows or reasonably should know that a particular conflict exists." Little Albert. Why excuse a judge's breach of judicial duty just because a lawyer has fallen down in his own ethics or is short on competence? 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There is no dispute before us as to the appointing judge's knowledge. even if no particular prejudice is shown and even if the defendant was clearly guilty." We granted a stay of execution of petitioner's sentence and granted certiorari. The Court of Appeals having found no such effect, see 240 F.3d, at 360, the denial of habeas relief must be affirmed. See Cronic, supra, at 658-659; see also Geders v. United States, 425 U.S. 80, 91 (1976); Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 344-345 (1963). . The U.S. House of Representatives is subpoenaing the National Labor Relations Board over alleged ethical violations, including one member's involvement in a McDonald's joint employer case. The court said in the 2014 case that a lawyer who faces a conflict between two current clients can't avoid current-client conflict rules by dropping one client "like a hot potato." Id., at 346. See, e.g., Campbell v. Rice, 265 F.3d 878, 887-888 (CA9 2001) (reversing conviction under Holloway when trial judge failed to enquire after the prosecutor indicated defense counsel had just been arraigned by the prosecutor's office on felony drug charges); United States v. Rogers, 209 F.3d 139, 145-146 (CA2 2000) (reversing conviction when District Court failed to enquire on notice that counsel for defendant alleging police misconduct was a police commissioner); United States v. Allen, 831 F.2d 1487, 1495-1496 (CA9 1987) (finding Magistrate Judge had reasonably enquired into joint representation of 17 codefendants who entered a group guilty plea, but reversing because the District Court failed to enquire when defense counsel later gave the court a list "rank[ing] the defendants by their relative culpability"). I disagree with the Court's assertion that the inquiry mandated by Cuyler v. Sullivan, 446 U.S. 335 (1980), will not aid in the determination of conflict and effect. Our role is to defer to the District Court's factual findings unless we can conclude they are clearly erroneous. (footnote omitted). This seems to us less a categorical rule of decision than a restatement of the issue to be decided. 450 U.S., at 262-263. Pp. Hall's body was discovered on March 30, 1992, and four days later a juvenile court judge dismissed the charges against him, noting on the docket sheet that Hall was deceased. But when, as in Sullivan, the judge lacked this knowledge, such a showing is required. Multifarious examples of conflict of interest are reported around the world, day-to-day. This Court held that multiple representation did not raise enough risk of impaired representation in a coming trial to trigger a trial court's duty to enquire further, in the absence of "special circumstances. Engaging in nepotism: Mixing personal relationships with professional ones can easily add up to conflicts of interest. It was, rather, much closer to Cuyler, since any notice to a court went only to a conflict, if there was one, that had pervaded a completed trial proceeding extending over two years. Ante, at 8-9. Dr. Smith, one of the reviewers currently set to review the application listing Dr. Jones' as PI, had been listed as one of the key personnel on an application with Dr. Jones as PI that was under review in another, recent study section. Strickland v. Washington, 466 U.S. 668, 694. 435 U.S., at 489 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). While the perceptive and conscientious lawyer (as in Holloway) needs nothing more than ethical duty to induce an objection, the venal lawyer is not apt to be reformed by a general rule that says his client will have an easier time reversing a conviction down the road if the lawyer calls attention to his own venality.10. Three are on point, Holloway v. Arkansas, supra; Cuyler v. Sullivan, supra; and Wood v. Georgia, supra. At petitioner's request, the District Court conducted an evidentiary hearing on the conflict claim and issued a thorough opinion, which found that counsel's brief representation of the victim had no effect whatsoever on the course of petitioner's trial. Under the Court's analysis, if defense counsel objects to the appointment, reversal without inquiry into adverse effect is required. Proc. In Sullivan we did not ask only whether an objection was made in order to ascertain whether the trial court had a duty to inquire. There is no dispute before us as to the District Court 's analysis, if counsel... To give codefendants unbiased advice concerning their right to separate also opt to downgrade to Standard Digital, robust! Convicted on all counts right to separate or to give codefendants unbiased advice concerning their right to separate conclude... Lacked this knowledge, such a showing is required adverse effect is required up to conflicts of interest are around! 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